I was sitting on the porch this morning smoking some latakia flake in an old Kaywoodie. A little over halfway through the bowl, I felt a little gurgle, and ran a pipe cleaner down to the stinger. I also thought, well why not unscrew the stem and do the shank too while I'm at it. The pipe was a little warm, but hey it's a screw stem right?
This got me thinking, why don't more pipe makers use screw stems instead of push stems. Out side of the stinger issue, the main objection seems to be that the screws wear and the stem eventually becomes un-clocked, or crooked. I'm certainly no expert in pipe making, or metallurgy, but wouldn't making a screw stem system out of harder material than aluminum be the answer? Why do pipe makers, both factory and artisanal, never seem to address one of the weakest spots on the pipe? I know in the past, pipe makers came up with all kinds of wacky ideas to make pipes better, both from a construction and smoking standpoint, like the "Adjustomatic" stem. But now it seems to be only about the briar, and the styling. I'm not saying those aren't important though. But why not make a screw stem from stainless? We cook for hours in stainless pots and pans, and few use aluminum unless it's anodized, or teflon coated because of the way it reacts sometimes to acids. Both titanium and tungsten are plenty hard, but I'm sure they would be much more difficult to machine than stainless.
I know that some smokers like to turn their stem a little to one side or the other to keep the bowl upright when clenched in the mouth. Why not put a tiny set screw in the middle of the stem logo so as to be able to adjust this on a screw stem. I like the ability to remove the stem easily and safely for moisture issues and cleaning pretty regularly. I would certainly pay more for a properly designed screw stem in a pipe, than for just some fancy trim work.
These are just some random thoughts I was having this morning, and maybe it'll just be viewed as some kind of nonsense. I know the saying, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". But sometimes it is broke, or maybe just cracked, and nobody wants that. Hopefully someone in the industry, or with experience in pipe making, or even metallurgy will have something to say about this, either good or bad.
This got me thinking, why don't more pipe makers use screw stems instead of push stems. Out side of the stinger issue, the main objection seems to be that the screws wear and the stem eventually becomes un-clocked, or crooked. I'm certainly no expert in pipe making, or metallurgy, but wouldn't making a screw stem system out of harder material than aluminum be the answer? Why do pipe makers, both factory and artisanal, never seem to address one of the weakest spots on the pipe? I know in the past, pipe makers came up with all kinds of wacky ideas to make pipes better, both from a construction and smoking standpoint, like the "Adjustomatic" stem. But now it seems to be only about the briar, and the styling. I'm not saying those aren't important though. But why not make a screw stem from stainless? We cook for hours in stainless pots and pans, and few use aluminum unless it's anodized, or teflon coated because of the way it reacts sometimes to acids. Both titanium and tungsten are plenty hard, but I'm sure they would be much more difficult to machine than stainless.
I know that some smokers like to turn their stem a little to one side or the other to keep the bowl upright when clenched in the mouth. Why not put a tiny set screw in the middle of the stem logo so as to be able to adjust this on a screw stem. I like the ability to remove the stem easily and safely for moisture issues and cleaning pretty regularly. I would certainly pay more for a properly designed screw stem in a pipe, than for just some fancy trim work.
These are just some random thoughts I was having this morning, and maybe it'll just be viewed as some kind of nonsense. I know the saying, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". But sometimes it is broke, or maybe just cracked, and nobody wants that. Hopefully someone in the industry, or with experience in pipe making, or even metallurgy will have something to say about this, either good or bad.